PAGE ONE (WASHINGTON) -- Dole's Running Mate Needs to Have Zip / But just who? That's the question

Marc Sandalow, Chronicle Washington Bureau

Published
4:00 am PDT, Tuesday, August 6, 1996

1996-08-06 04:00:00 PDT Washington -- Bob Dole knows what he wants in a vice president. He would like a popular governor from the South or Midwest, who is presidential yet youthful, conservative yet acceptable to moderates, and electrifying enough to energize his lackluster campaign.

And it would help if she were black.

As Dole nears a final decision on a running mate --

an announcement is expected in the next several days -- he is well aware of the need to do something dramatic to shake up his listless bid for the presidency.

Dole took one bold step yesterday in Chicago, his aides believe, when he announced an ambitious economic plan that contained large tax cuts. The next step will come by week's end when Dole tells the world -- probably from his childhood home of Russell, Kan. -- his choice for vice president.

"He needs to gin up some excitement," said Dan Schnur, a former aide to California Governor Pete Wilson, who would likely have been at the head of a list of vice presidential choices if he had not damaged his popularity in California by waging his own failed campaign for the White House.

It is not clear that such a person exists. Less than a week before the opening of the Republican National Convention, many are beginning to wonder if there is anyone who is exciting enough to fulfill the Dole campaign's needs.

The selection of a vice president is usually not considered to be a deciding factor in presidential contests. But this year could be different. At 73, Dole could become the oldest president ever elected to a first term, increasing the likelihood that a vice president could ascend to the presidency.

And with Dole continuing to trail President Clinton by 10 to 20 percentage points in opinion polls -- even after he took the dramatic step of retiring from the Senate -- there is enormous pressure to name a running mate who might add focus, energy and articulation to the Republican ticket.

Of the names now being taken seriously, few would qualify as exciting.

The Dole camp has questioned nine prospective candidates -- three senators, five governors and one former governor. All are conservative white men.

Voinovich has announced that he is not interested in the post, and Ridge also has reportedly disqualified himself from consideration.

In Washington rumor circles, Campbell and Mack are considered the leading candidates. Each is anti-abortion, has strong conservative credentials and is widely viewed as capable of assuming the presidency.

However, it is unlikely that any of the nine would turn the race on its head.

"None of them provide an excitement level outside their own states," Schnur said.

Many Republicans still hope that Dole can somehow persuade retired General Colin Powell to join the ticket. Most analysts agree that Powell is the one who could rally Republicans and make the party instantly competitive.

But Powell has emphatically stated he will not take the job -- as has New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman, who had also been promoted as a contender.

Other outside names to surface include William Bennett, the former education secretary, who has traveled extensively with Dole; California Attorney General Dan Lungren; whom House Speaker Newt Gingrich is promoting; former Wyoming congressman Dick Cheney; and former Secretary of State James Baker. One columnist even made the case that the strongest pick might be a woman with Cabinet-level experience, strong anti-abortion positions, powerful speaking skills and unquestionably good personal relations with Dole -- his own wife, Elizabeth.

The Dole campaign has tried to keep the process private, hoping the suspense will generate some interest in next week's convention. The search is being headed by Robert Ellsworth, a former congressman from Kansas and a close friend of Dole's, and Ellsworth has refused to grant interviews to the media.

Most aides say they do not expect to know Dole's decision before he makes it public. When Dole decided to leave the Senate last spring, most of his top staff and closest friends were not informed until the final moments. Similar secrecy is expected around the vice presidential pick, aides say.